Goldman, Citi Stave Off Investor Calls for Racial Audits (1)

Initial calls for racial audits at Wall Street banks and other corporations were rejected by shareholders, but support was high enough that companies are likely to face increased pressure to agree to future reviews.

Shareholder proposals for independent racial audits filed at Johnson & Johnson and Citigroup Inc.received backing from more than a third of shareholders at annual meetings this month. At Goldman Sachs Group Inc., 29% of shareholders voted for an audit at the company’s annual meeting Thursday. The investors’ recommendations called for a deep-dive analysis into the companies’ business models -- from policies to products and ...